The organizers of the 2026 Italian Championships have chosen quite a unique parcours. A 233-kilometer stage covering the distance from Asti to Cuneo will present a total of roughly 2,700 meters of climbing, of which majority is concentrated into the race’s first third.
With the final 90 kilometers on mostly flat or rolling roads, the race may come down to multiple scenarios. And Bardiani CSF 7 Saber want to be ready for every single one of them as their nomination for the race features no less than 15 names!
“The Italian Championship is always a special event for us,” said team manager Roberto Reverberi said during the race presentation.
Quantity to surpass quality
Of course, the ProTeam formation is normally at a disadvantage against WorldTour teams when it comes to individual firepower but using their numbers, they aim to flip the race upside down. Just like have managed to the amateur Swatt Team last year to win through Filippo Conca.
The nominated are: Filippo Cettolin, Luca Colnaghi, Lorenzo Conforti, Santiago Ferraro, Filippo Magli, Marco Manenti, Martin Marcellusi, Alessio Martinelli, Andrea Montagner, Luca Paletti, Mattia Stenico, Manuele Tarozzi, Filippo Turconi, Matteo Turconi, and Enrico Zanoncello.
Among this group, Enrico Zanoncello stands out as a sprint option with two top-10s from this year’s Giro, meanwhile Filippo Magli or Martin Marcellusi could succeed with an attack from far out.
“We’ll be starting with a large and competitive group, made up of riders with diverse characteristics who will be able to approach the race in a variety of ways. The course lends itself to an open race: our goal will be to be a key player, trying to get involved in the decisive moments and fighting to the end for a significant result,” the tactician concludes.